Negative urgency, distress tolerance, and symptoms of substance use, eating, and borderline personality disorders in treatment-seeking young people

ObjectiveNegative urgency (NU) and distress tolerance (DT) are two similar yet distinct constructs with putative transdiagnostic relevance, particularly across psychopathology characterized by impulsivity (e.g., substance use disorders [SUD], eating disorders featuring binging and/or purging ED-B/P, and borderline personality disorder [BPD]). Yet, there remains a lack of research into NU and DT across SUD, ED-B/P, and BPD symptomatology in clinical populations. The present study sought to elucidate the transdiagnostic utility of NU and DT across impulsive-type psychology by examining the unique and interactive roles of NU and DT across SUD, ED-B/P, and BPD symptomatology within a treatment-seeking sample of young people. MethodParticipants (N = 385; 62.3% female; aged 16-25 years) were recruited from youth health services across Melbourne, Australia. Participants completed an online survey including self-report measures of NU and DT as well as SUD, ED-B/P, and BPD symptoms. Mixed effects logistic regression was used to explore unique and interactive associations of NU and DT with symptoms. ResultsBoth NU (adjusted odds ratio [ORadj] = 1.22; 95% confidence interval [CI] = [1.16, 1.28]) and global DT (ORadj = 0.59; 95% CI = [0.47, 0.74]) uniquely predicted symptoms. However, associations with global DT and most of its components differed across psychopathology types. No significant interactions between NU and DT in predicting symptoms were found. ConclusionsThese results support the transdiagnostic utility of NU across SUD, ED-B/P, and BPD, while suggesting the role of DT across these disorders is more nuanced. These findings have important implications for NU and DT as potential intervention targets.

Automated summary

This study aimed to investigate the transdiagnostic utility of negative urgency (NU) and distress tolerance (DT) across substance use disorders (SUD), eating disorders featuring binging and/or purging (ED-B/P), and borderline personality disorder (BPD) symptoms. The results showed that NU had utility across SUD, ED-B/P, and BPD, while the role of DT was more nuanced. These findings have important implications for NU and DT as potential intervention targets.